In hazardous environments, you know several things are going on side by side. Such as workers, heavy machinery, and fast-moving vehicles are operating simultaneously. In such high-risk environments, a safety vest protects and highlights you in chaos. However, they come with different materials and colors. Therefore, we’ve prepared this guide and explained everything about safety vests. So you know what material and color you need to choose in what circumstances.
What is a Safety Vest?
A safety vest is a high-visibility jacket. It is designed to enhance the visibility of the wearer. Plus, improve safety for workers, pedestrians, and cyclists in low-light conditions and hazardous environments. You have seen people wearing these safety vests at construction sites, road work, emergency services, manufacturing sites, airports, and even while riding or driving.
They are generally made from bright-colored materials such as neon yellow, orange, or green (to cater to different industries). At JACKWIN, we manufacture these vests with reflective strips for enhanced visibility. So if you’re looking for high-visibility vests, check our catalog.
What is the Purpose of a Safety Vest?
The purpose of a safety vest is simple. And that’s to make workers highly visible in risky environments. Plus, when you wear a safety vest, it helps others around you (like drivers/ machine operators/ crew) spot you quickly at a glance, even from a far distance. That way, you’ll be quickly seen, and others may exercise caution. This also helps you stay compliant with ISO safety standards.
What is a Safety Vest for Work?
A safety vest for work is a high-visibility garment that employees wear. Their purpose is to keep you and others who are wearing this, stay safe while working in hazardous conditions. They are commonly used in construction, roadwork, warehouses, logistics, and emergency services industries. At such sites, these vests act as a protective layer and highlight you in crowded areas, busy operations, poor weather, or nighttime shifts.
What is a Safety Vest Made of?
According to ANSI, safety vests are typically made with two types of durable and lightweight materials. But in different colors and designs for different traffic environments. Below, we’ve explained a breakdown of the process they go through to become a final product:
Material Used:
Generally, safety vests are made with polyester and nylon materials. However, the fabric for safety vests is prepared in two types: Fluorescent fabrics (for background material) and retroreflective material (for visibility).
- Fluorescent Fabric: Fluorescent fabric is prepared after dyeing polyester fabric in bright colors. Commonly, neon yellow, orange, or lime green colors are used in the dyeing process.
- Retroreflective Material: In this process, retroreflective strips/patches or glass beads are used on fabric. So that the vest becomes more visible, especially at night.
Manufacturing Process of Safety Vest:
After the material preparation, the safety vest goes through the manufacturing process:
- Firstly, fluorescent fabric is cut into vest panels (front, back, and sides).
- Then, mesh panels are added onto the jackets. That makes jackets more breathable and water-resistant
- After that, reflective tape or strips are heat-pressed or sewn onto the vest. Either in a horizontal or vertical pattern.
- In the next step, vest panels are stitched together. Then, additional features like zippers, buttons, pockets, ID holders, or side adjusters are added.
- Once stitched, finally, safety vests are checked for proper reflectivity and durability.
And that’s how safety vests are made.
What is a Safety Vest Used For?
Here are the most common uses of safety vest:
- High Visibility: It’s one of the primary purposes of a safety vest. By wearing a safety vest (regardless of the vest color), you will be highly visible. And anyone can notice you easily at a glance.
- Workplace Safety: Safety vests are a must-have for every crew member on job sites. Whether it’s construction, warehouses, factories, or industrial areas, this helps you stay visible and hence stay protected around heavy machinery, busy loading zones, and high-traffic areas.
- Road & Traffic Safety: If you’re a traffic police officer or an emergency responder, wearing a safety vest can help you stay protected. On roads, vehicles are constantly passing by, so when drivers notice you (via your bright-colored vest), they get an instant alert and slow down or change lanes to avoid accidents.
- Public Safety & Events: At large public events like concerts, marathons, or festivals, organizers and security teams can wear safety vests to stay visible in the crowd. This helps present attendees find assistance easily. Plus, you’ll keep operating smoothly.
- Recreational Uses: Safety vests are also widely used in outdoor activities, such as cycling, hiking, and running. So you can wear a safety vest for these activities too. This helps you stay highly visible to drivers and others, especially during early mornings, evenings, or in bad weather conditions.
What are the Types of Safety Vests?
Despite their simple purpose of high visibility and safety, safety vests are categorized into three types under the new ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 standards (based on the environment they’re used in). And each type is divided across three classes. Let’s understand the difference between this vest classification:
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Type 0 Safety Vests (Off-Road)
Type 0 safety vests are designed for non-roadway use. Means, the places without road involvement and where vehicles are not present. Such as warehouses, factories, forklift operators, and mining sites. And that’s why type 0 has only class 1 visibility vests. Typically, these vests offer basic visibility and are meant for use in lower-risk jobs.
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Type R Safety Vests (Roadway)
Well, if you ask what is a type r safety vest? It’s for roadway use. Means they are ideal for wearing in construction, transportation, and road maintenance sites. In this category, class 2 and class 3 vest falls. Plus, these vests are highly visible. Because in such sites, workers are often near or on the road, so a high-visibility vest helps them stay highlighted and safe.
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Type P Safety Vest (Public Safety)
Whereas, type p safety vests are for emergency and first responders. Such as firefighters, police officers, and paramedics. Similar to type R, type P also includes class 2 and class 3 safety vests. These vests are extraordinarily highly visible, flexible, and breathable. Plus, they often come with extra features such as breakaway designs. So that during emergencies, they can be removed easily.
What is a Safety Vest Class 1?
Well, class 1 safety vests are the sole class in type 0. This class requires a lower ratio of high-visibility material. Because they are meant for professionals who work in non-road areas where there is little to no interference from roads and vehicles. But there is a potential risk of accidents.
In such sites, it’s also important that the vehicle speed shouldn’t exceed 25 mph and the worksite background shouldn’t be complex. Typically, class 1 type 0 safety vests are sleeveless, in a yellow/ orange background with a minimum of 155 square inches of retroreflective tape/ strips. You can wear them during parking lots, road repairs, warehouses, mines, or oil extraction jobs.
What is a Class 2 Safety Vest?
Class 2 safety vests (often referred to as a level 2 safety vest) fall under both type P and type R safety vests. They are more highly visible and flexible compared to Class 1 vests. And that’s why they are required where traffic speed exceeds 25 mph and must be worn in higher-risk environments, such as toll booths, airports, railway sites, road construction sites, and utility work.
If you wonder what a Type R class 2 safety vest requires? This includes the following: They are sleeveless, oversized, have yellow and orange background material with a minimum of 201 square inches of reflective strips across the vest. You’re required to wear a class 2 vest everywhere where you’re close to moving traffic and heavy equipment.
What is a Class 3 Safety Vest?
Class 3 safety vests also come under both type P and type R. But they provide a more enhanced and utmost level of high-visibility, especially in low-light conditions. These vests are specially designed for those who work near fast-moving vehicles and where traffic speed exceeds 50 mph, such as emergency responders, roadway construction companies’ workers, surveyors, tow truck operators, and utility workers.
What is Safety Vest Colors Meaning?
Although OSHA and ANSI haven’t mandated about . But there are some colors that have been commonly used, and work best in different roles and work environments. Here’s what the colors on safety vests mean:
- Orange Safety Vests
Orange is used for workers who work in natural background settings, such as working near trees, dirt, under blue sky/ yellow sunlight or construction areas. Typically, road crews, construction workers, and hunters wore this color because it easily grabs attention.
- Yellow/Green Safety Vests
Yellow or yellow-green vests are the most common. Although they can be used in every light condition, they are more ideal for use during nighttime work or when sunlight is minimal. You have often seen warehouse workers, traffic controllers, airport staff and emergency responders wear this color.
- Red Safety Vests
Red vests are often used in emergency situations. You have seen firefighters, paramedics, or disaster response teams wearing red vests because it signals urgency and alerts others quickly.
- Blue Safety Vests
Typically, visitors, technical workers, or temporary staff on job sites are required to wear blue safety vests. This color simply signals to others that this person isn’t part of a regular crew. Plus, they may need guidance or restricted access.
- Black or Dark Safety Vests
Black vests are sometimes used for supervisors or management-level staff during events or in public safety roles. While not as common, this color still shows a professional appearance, along with staying highly visible and hence safe.
What is the Importance of Wearing a Safety Vest?
Increased Visibility: Since safety vests are in bright colors and have retroreflective strips. So when you wear them, you’ll be easily visible to others (even from a far distance). Even if you’re in a crowd, you’ll be clearly noticed by those who might need your help in an emergency situation.
Accident Prevention: When you wear a safety vest, you stay visible. Hence, your accident chances are reduced. For instance, you’re working on the road and a driver is passing by. When a vehicle’s headlight falls on your vest, its retroreflective strips bounce back the light in the driver’s eyes. That way, drivers instantly know that you are there and slow down.
Compliance with Safety Regulations: As per the local safety regulations, several industries and workplaces are required to instruct workers to wear safety vests during operations. So, if you wear a safety vest, you stay compliant. But if you do not, you’ll get heavy penalties or fines.
Enhanced Confidence and Morals: It’s the most overlooked benefit of wearing a safety vest. When workers wear safety vests at worksites, their confidence and morale are boosted. That way, they focus more and do productive work.
Reduced Risks of “Struck-by” Accidents: At worksites, getting hit by an object or vehicle is a common occurrence, especially in low-light conditions. But when you wear a safety vest, you become highly visible. That way, others around you exercise caution, and you stay protected from being struck by accidents.
Role Identification: Different colored safety vests show you who’s who on a worksite. That way, you can manage crowds better, organize workflows, and even quickly find the right person (when needed).
Brand Identity: You can also wear a customized safety vest at your worksite that includes your company’s logo. That way, facilities workers can promote brand awareness while doing their jobs.
OSHA Safety Vest Requirements
Actually, OSHA doesn’t make the rules for safety vests. Instead, ANSI writes the rules and OSHA enforces them. And employees and facilities have to follow those rules to avoid OSHA violations. Means, if your workers operate near or in moving vehicles and heavy equipment, they must wear a safety vest that meets ANSI standards.
That’s why we’ve created a table below and included all OSHA and ANSI rules side by side for your clear understanding:
| Requirement | OSHA Standard (29 CFR 1910.132 & 1926.95) | ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 Reference | Details |
| High-Visibility Colors | Required for workers near traffic or hazards | Fluorescent yellow-green, orange-red, or red | Must be visible in daylight. |
| Reflective Strips | Mandatory for low-light/night work | ANSI Type R (Retroreflective) or Type O (Non-retroreflective) | Minimum 2-inch-wide strips (Class 2/3). |
| Minimum Coverage | OSHA defers to ANSI standards | Class 1: 217 in² background + 155 in² reflectivity
Class 2: 775 in² background + 201 in² reflectivity Class 3: 1,240 in² background + 310 in² reflectivity |
More coverage = higher visibility. |
| Work Environments | Required where workers are exposed to:
• Traffic > 25 mph • Low visibility (night, bad weather) • Construction zones (1926 Subpart G) |
Class 1: Parking lots, warehouses
Class 2: Road crews, airport tarmacs Class 3: Highway work, emergency responders |
OSHA cites ANSI for class selection. |
| Material & Durability | Must be “appropriate” for hazards (1910.132) | Flame-resistant (FR), waterproof, or breakaway options are available | Must withstand workplace conditions. |
| Labeling | No specific OSHA label requirement | Must display ANSI-compliant label (Class, type, manufacturer) | Ensures traceability and compliance. |
| Enforcement | OSHA fines for non-compliance ($15,625 per violation) | ANSI certification ensures OSHA compliance | Employers must provide compliant vests. |
How Much Do Safety Vests Cost?
Well, it depends on the supplier and your safety vest requirement. Generally, class 1/ non-ANSI safety vests are less expensive, around $3–$10. At the same time, the ANSI Class 2 vests cost you around $10–$25. And the Class 3 costs you around ($25–$60+). But if you want a specialized safety vest with features like flame-resistant (FR) material, tear-away designs, or company logos, the vest’s price will go from a few dollars to a hundred dollars ($30–$100+).
Not to forget, this is the estimated cost of a single safety vest. So if you buy a few vests from a supplier, the price will be even higher. So we suggest you purchase a safety vest in bulk from a wholesaler, like us. We have been manufacturing and supplying ANSI and OSHA-compliant safety vests for 18+ years. We can also customize vests with your brand logo. So contact our team today!
Our Tips For Choosing the Right Safety Vest
At JACKWIN, we manufacture high-visibility and ANSI-compliant safety jackets for several industries across various countries. From our 18+ years of experience in this safety product industry, below we’ve shared a few tips for you that help you choose rthe ight safety vest for your needs:
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Understand Your Work Environment
Firstly, you should understand the work environment where you’ll be going to operate. Is it a busy construction site? A warehouse with moving forklifts? Or an emergency response situation? Plus, what will be the traffic speed at your worksite? Also, will you be working during daytime or nighttime shifts?
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Choose the Right Type and Class
The next thing you should consider is choosing the right safety vest type and class. You must ensure that you choose a vest that meets the correct Type (O, R, or P) and Class (1, 2, or 3) based on OSHA and ANSI standards. For well-lit, low-risk areas with traffic speed (< 25 mph), Class 1 safety vests are best.
For moderate-risk environments with traffic speed (25–50 mph) or bad weather (rain, fog), choose Class 2 vests. And for high-risk areas with high-speed traffic (> 50 mph), extreme weather, or low-light conditions, choose Class 3 vests (as per the Class 3 safety vest requirements of OSHA).
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Pick the Correct Color
If you’ll work in general work sites like construction, roadwork, or warehouses, choose fluorescent yellow-green color. For road crews, hunting, and traffic controllers, fluorescent orange color is ideal. Red is mostly used by firefighters and emergency responders. For personal usage, you can go for any dark or bright color with retroreflective strips for high-visibility purposes.
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Check for Comfort and Fit
People often ask what a class 2 level 2 safety vest is and whether they are comfortable to wear. So yes. Because they are lightweight, breathable, and oversized vests, you can also go for a class 3 level 3 safety vest, as they have the same comfort, but they come with full sleeves.
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Look for Extra Features
Depending on the job, you can also look for vests with added features. Such as pockets for tools and radios, waterproof or flame-resistant materials, and reinforced stitching for extra durability. You can also go for sleeves (Class 3) for full upper-body visibility, or sleeveless (Class 1 & 2) vests.
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Always Confirm Compliance
Last and most important tip, whatever vest type you choose, you must ensure that it meets ANSI/ISEA 107-2020 standards.
Need Help? If you’re still unsure which safety vest you should choose for your workers’ or personal needs, contact us, and our team will help you choose and recommend a few of the best options, as per your needs!
Wrapping It Up
We hope that after reading this guide, you now know that these normal-looking jackets play a huge role in ensuring safety. They are not for company workers; any citizen can wear them, especially those who love to hunt or cycle during low-light conditions. So if you’re looking for a safety vest at wholesale price, contact us today!
